Mike Dailey is the owner of claroPoint.com, an Information Technology consulting firm specializing in the design, integration, and management of Internet website and security technologies. He can be reached through the claroPoint website at http://www.claroPoint.com

A basic WordPress installation is pre-configured “out of the box” to provide a good level of performance and security. With a few basic steps, however, you can tune WordPress to provide a more responsive and secure WordPress website to your visitors. Disable/Modify WordPress Post Revisions By default WordPress will save copies of each edit made to a post or page, allowing you to revert to a... Read More

WordPress continues to grow as an affordable and reliable platform for small business websites. As more small business owners turn to WordPress for small business ecommerce and marketing of services it becomes increasingly important to ensure a WordPress powered website is configured and operating at peak efficiency. The following tips will help to ensure a WordPress website delivers the uptime... Read More

On Friday, December 14th twenty-six people, 20 students and six adults, were shot and killed at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut by a well-armed gunman. As our nation struggles in the aftermath to understand how and why this unspeakable tragedy occurred, our grief is quickly turning to calls for change in the form of stricter gun control legislation with some going as far... Read More

Offering your services as a freelance or independent consultant has many advantages. The income potential, flexibility in work/life balance, and the satisfaction that comes from managing a successful business are all major factors in the decision to hang out your shingle as a consultant. Unfortunately, with the good comes the bad, and handling clients that refuse to pay for your services is a... Read More

If you are like most WordPress website administrators, you use Google Analytics to track website traffic and statistics. For Small business website operators and Internet entrepreneurs, traffic statistics are a valuable source of SEO and marketing data. Unfortunately, Google Analytics will by default track just about all WordPress admin page access to the site, skewing the traffic statistics... Read More

For any website operator, especially one that is chasing good SEO ranking, Google Analytics will be a familiar tool. WordPress websites are no exception, with Google Analytics easily integrated within a WordPress theme via code or WordPress plugin. With Google Analytics being used globally for website traffic, statistics, and Internet market data mining, here are a few useful tips when using... Read More

As we read and discuss the subject of computer hacking and related nefarious uses of the Internet, we focus for the most part on the Information Technology and Information Security side of the topic. There is another side, however, one dealing with the moral and ethical aspects of hacking, approached from a religious viewpoint to draw the parallel between what many consider innocent computer... Read More

Not long ago, the phrase portable secure storage did not mean a great deal to the average business traveler. Today, however, carrying large amounts of data, including application files, digital photos, and music, is a reality for most tech-savvy travelers. Whether you are on the go for business or personal reasons, you likely carry a large quantity of data with you, and odds are it is not... Read More

Failing a certification exam can be a disheartening and emotionally draining experience. You go into the testing center nervous, but confident, and walk out deflated and upset. It is an experience that many of us in the field of Information Technology know all too well. While it can render a blow to your confidence and self esteem, failing a certification exam can become a positive experience and... Read More

Quite often, when traveling on business, your mind shifts into “work mode” the moment you pass through airport security or adjust the mirrors on your rental car. You become focused on the project, or if homeward bound, on finally making it to your front door. Once accustomed to traveling, it can become “second nature” for an IT consultant, a set of steps that are seemingly followed subconsciously... Read More

We are just a week away from the month of October, and October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM). The goal of National Cyber Security Awareness Month, conducted every October since 2004 and sponsored by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), is to improve cyber security posture and preparedness, and to encourage everyone to protect their networks and our nation’s critical... Read More

“If an individual wants to be a leader and isn't controversial, that means he never stood for anything.” This quote by President Richard Nixon touches on one of the less appealing aspects of being a leader . Controversy is never easy, and supporting controversial ideas or opinions is often met with the slings and arrows of those that despise change, fear the future, and worry that their... Read More

Apparently, Netflix's decision to raise prices by as much as 60 percent is turning into a “ horror show " for the company. Who thought otherwise? A 60 percent rise in price, or a 50 percent cut in service, either way you look at it this was a critical mistake for Netflix. Netflix's stock price is down more than 40 percent compared to where it stood before the company announced the higher pricing... Read More

In the world of Information Technology, there is a vast difference between someone who is a manager and someone who is a leader . A manager is a person responsible for planning and directing the work of a group of individuals, monitoring their work, and taking corrective action when necessary. A leader, on the other hand, embodies the inspiration and motivation of the team. He or she is the... Read More

While traveling has always been a relatively stressful experience, in the past several years there have been many changes that negatively impact the travel experience and drive up stress levels. Increased airport security, major road construction, and even changing weather patterns have made the business travel experience, well, an experience. When traveling for business, there are a variety of... Read More

As reported across several media outlets , a group of so-called hackers, calling themselves the “Script Kiddies”, successfully hacked the Twitter account of NBC News . In a public display of pure ignorance, the hackers began posting news updates of a new terrorist attack involving aircraft hijackings, and planes hitting the Ground Zero site in New York City. This group, purportedly an offshoot... Read More

United States House of Representatives members are readying a series of cybersecurity bills that are designed to enhance security on several fronts, including toughening law enforcement, assigning responsibility to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for federal IT and critical infrastructure security, and to lessen legal liability for private organizations that adhere to security best... Read More

This evening, I ran across a reference to an article entitled, “ Four Things I Want You to Remember Me By ” , where author Clif Reichard lays out the professional traits he wants to be remembered for as he prepares to retire. In the article, Clif explains why he lives by the mantra “ethics, customers, profit. Don't forget that,” and other self-imposed rules that governed his life and career. ... Read More

How large is your digital footprint? If you pulled together your email account, web site, blog, social networking accounts, and every other virtual identity you have online, just how well known are you on the Internet? Have you ever stopped to consider what happens to your online identity when you die? How would your online friends know? What would happen to your accounts and your content? As... Read More

I ran across a CNNMoney article today detailing the fallout from Google’s decision to shutter a popular game, SuperPoke! Pets . What caught my attention was the estimated $650 million in real cash that will be spent this year to purchase virtual goods as part of online games. Admittedly, over the years I’ve spent my share of real cash for virtual goods in online games, including World of... Read More

As anyone in the Information Technology consultancy field will know, traveling is part of the game. Some of us travel locally, and some of us travel nationally. Either way, we all spend a good amount of time in a plane, train, or automobile, moving to or from a client site. When accounting for this time, whether for client billing or time tracking purposes, our travel time is usually allocated as... Read More

It is no secret that cyber attacks are growing in complexity and severity. In August of this year, a malware-powered cyber-reconnaissance attack, dubbed Operation Shady RAT, was reported by McAfee. The cyber attack had been ongoing since 2006, and claimed victims across a wide spectrum of Internet connected organizations, including government agencies in the United States, Canada, and South... Read More

According to a joint survey by the University of Pennsylvania and University of California-Berkeley, 84% of consumers object to being tracked online, with many seeing it as a violation of their online privacy. With that type of user feedback, it is not surprising that this week’s launch of a “Do Not Track” option by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) was met with staunch criticism by... Read More

I’m a fan of small airports. When you travel often as an IT consultant, you look for every timesaver and meager benefit you can find. Small airports tend to provide the essentials all wrapped up in a neat little building that makes it easy to get in and get out. Outagamie County Airport (ATW) in Appleton, Wisconsin is one of those airports. If you are visiting a client site in northeastern... Read More

There has been a lot of discussion lately concerning Internet security and privacy, spurred on by what seems like an almost daily occurrence of web site hacking and the loss of confidential data. Medical facilities, private industry, and governments alike struggle to come to grips with new methods of cyber crime and cyber terrorism. While the majority of cyber attacks are carried out by amateur... Read More

I’m not much of a gamer, and I typically spend little time reading up on video game news. When I read the news story about GameStop opening manufacturer-sealed video game boxes to remove a competitors coupon, I have to say that it did upset me. It amazes me that a vendor would employ such an unprofessional practice to prevent a competitor from doing business. After the news broke, gamers began... Read More

A relatively new hacker web site has cropped up, but this time it’s less about hacking and more about competition… sort of. RankMyHack.com is a web site where hackers can compete amongst one another for ranking as the top hacker. This is accomplished by earning points for the number and size of the success hacks attributed to the hacker. The web site tracks confirmed hacks, awards points, and... Read More

As more incidents of hacking, theft, and data loss make the headlines this week, the question remains as to who is responsible for the lapses in Internet security that make it seemingly easy to commit these types of cyber crime. Whether it be the public or private sector organization that was targeted, a government body, an Internet Service Provider, or the throngs of Internet users and consumers... Read More

Being an IT consultant in computer networking means passing exams and earning certifications. For an in-house technical resource, having a single IT certification in a given area is sufficient to do the job well. For the IT consultant, however, the name of the game is certifications and experience. A client wants to know that the people handling their systems are highly skilled, possessing a... Read More

A few days ago I wrote about a piece of my intellectual property, an article I wrote and posted on DaileyMuse.com, being stolen, plagiarized, and posted on another web site under a different author's name. I hadn’t been looking for my work elsewhere, I was simply browsing the access logs and visiting other websites that stood out. As a result of finding my work posted elsewhere without my... Read More